Tekst piosenki 'Now or Never' wykonawcy The Roots

Everything's changin around me and I wanna change too
It's one thing I know, it ain't cool bein no fool
I feel different today, I don't know what else to say
But I'm a get my shit together, it's now or never
(Now or never, now or never, now or never ...)

[Verse 1 - Black Thought]
Uh, I'm sick, sick of waitin in vain, tired of playin the game
Thinkin of makin a change, finally breakin the chains
Every phase, every happenin, craze
When it's said and done, my head is right back in the haze
I'm ready for the next chapter and page to start actin my age
And part ways with Black Thought from back in the days
I'm stargazin from the back of the stage
Questionin if who y'all praise, is worthy of praise
What's the phrase "bygones is bygones?"
Niggaz who used to be the underdog is icons
People say the light shines once in a lifetime
Is this meant like kind or crisis a little bit like mine?
I'm thinkin not now but right now
I need some kind of sign that the future is bright now
I fuck around, "Do The Right Thing" like Spike now
The quick and the dead, which one is my lookalike now, I'm movin ahead

[Chorus]

[Verse 2 - Phonte]
Yo, opportunities lost because I blew 'em
On the sunniest days of my life, I cried through 'em
Moms is out the picture and Pops I barely knew him
And I would pray to God but I'm tired of lyin to Him
Tired of tryin to run from the things inside of us
Got a lot of fam and a lot of admirers
Who tell me that I should aspire to
change but when I think of changin, it's like why even try this shit?
My mind hazy and my thoughts they get distorted
I know my good and bad deeds both get recorded
You do right so your soul can last
But my role was cast before I even auditioned for it
So I don't really see an end to my vice
It's just false reformation, no end to my strife
Feel the evil overpowerin
You can go 'head, throw the towel in, 'cause nigga that's the end of the fight
When you can only see the tunnel at the end of the lights
Like South party over, it's the end of your life and I'm out

[Chorus]

[Verse 3 - Dice Raw]
When I look into the mirror and see my own image
It feel like there's something else far off in the distance
Something I wanna see but something that's resistant
And everyday the heart it in is growin more persistent
I never noticed it before but now I can't miss it
And the constant pounding's drivin me ballistic
I ran from it few years but it's still next to me
And it's growin stronger, takin, leavin less of me
I can't fight it now, I know it's just destiny
And I just wonder what's gonna happen when it catches me
Will it leave me face down, in a chest of pee
Or will it just start bringin out the best of me?
But is the best of me really just the worst of me
And if so, yesterday could be my anniversary
In sinners' court, it's important to have church with me
I'm tryin to get rid of these ghosts that's cursin me
I feel a change is an absolute certainty
'Cause what's goin on is a state of emergency (state of emergency)

[Chorus]
Everything's changin around me and I wanna change too
It's one thing I know, it ain't cool bein no fool
I feel different today, I don't know what else to say
But I'm a get my shit together, it's now or never
It's now or never